GoWings1905

Selig is horrible, but he's got nothing on Bettman and Stern.

More negotiating nonsense from the league: do it our way or we'll just whine and keep extending the lockout. I was kinda thinking the Winter Classic would be the start of the season the way things were playing out. Now I just fully expect the entire season to go down the drain. Too much arrogance and incompetent fools running this league to have any confidence they will do something sensible for once.

Another mouthpiece for the league and Bettman -- just what nobody wants to hear anymore. Jimmy D's extreme defense of Bettman in that interview was pathetic. Three lockouts under his watch speaks for itself. He's a piss poor leader of the NHL in every sense except in the eyes of the 30 billionaires whining about the system they created with Betttman's help.

The Tigers should probably try and get some guys that play defense going forward. This is just beyond sorry.

I don't know how the season will play out for the Tigers as a team, but I do know one thing: Miguel Cabrera is the MVP. Really hope Max is OK -- reports don't sound too promising right now. Avila and Berry both injured too. The bats are fully alive tonight at least. The Tigers need wins and a lot of them the rest of the way plus some help as well.

Stevie is going to win this easily. The generation that will vote primarily connects with him the most. Lots of special names on that bracket.

I personally don't think Fil's english is bad at all. He's always been easy to understand during interviews. Pav has come a long way, but he's still a hilarious adventure to try and decipher. I guess my point is I don't see a language barrier being an obstruction to a leadership role for Fil. Personally I would like to see Cleary get the third "A" if they decide to rotate three again.

The 8-10 record against Cleveland certainly looks like a difference maker, especially considering the Tigers went 12-6 against the White Sox. Even if the Tigers go a mediocre 10-8 instead against the lousy Indians, those are two huge games in the standings. The Tigers are probably getting what they deserve ultimately. They are no different now than in April. The team we are looking at is severely flawed even in a very poor division. I never really bought the Tigers would just run away after watching them play the first couple months of inconsistent baseball. Their major issues are with personnel not adjustments. I'm not giving up by any stretch, but today was a deflator.

That sure feels like a dagger. 2-13 in the last 15 games decided by a run. So many disappointing players on the team. Very top heavy in talent. The supporting cast was overrated by management.

That's a critical loss. Valverde has to come up with a save there. Not really going to miss him -- last season was impressive but extremely flukey and this season he has been way too hittable for a closer. Story of the game though for me was defense. Porcello gets four ground balls in one inning, three of them should have been routine double plays and the Tigers got two outs total. Prince and Avila collide on another simple out. The ump didn't help, but that's just an excuse for a team that plays lousy defense on a daily basis. Hate to use it, but tomorrow might be a must-win after this tough defeat today. The White Sox were up three after last Monday and could be again with time running out and no head-to-head meetings remaining. Would have been really nice to go to Chicago just a game behind. Story of the season really -- missed opportunities and frustration.

Sad, but very true. Thing is though you may be able to pull that off once (which he did somehow wiping out an entire season), but I'm pretty sure that won't be the case again with an extended lockout. There are enough fragile hockey markets as it is, let alone infuriating the strong fan bases that keep getting asked to pay good money so billionaires can fight over revenue every seven years. Hockey, as a whole, doesn't have the massive following like the NFL or MLB to keep expecting a loyal following when it just feels like we're getting jerked around in the name of greed. It's bad enough Bettman's answer is always a lockout, but to be arrogant enough to think hockey fans are just going to come back happily again when this all ends is absolutely pathetic. Throwing "Thank You Fans" on the ice and telling us ticket prices will be lower (which they never ended up being) won't appease people this time around.

Gary Bettman is a disgusting person. I am 100% with the players. The owners and Bettman created this system entirely seven years ago to their liking and now it doesn't work? I can't express how disappointing and pathetic this entire situation is. Revenues and attendance through the roof (except in the lousy markets this fiasco surrounds) after missing an entire season and the fans reward is to get s*** on by a bunch of greedy billionaires. I've said this before, but if I didn't love the Red Wings, I would run away from the NHL and never look back.

I'm with ya. I know it isn't really his role, but I expected more from Abby offensively at this point in his development. He has also been terrible in two consecutive playoffs. As others have stated, he's better suited at wing than center. I think his best attribute is his physicality and forechecking ability, which is more limited playing center.

Another thing is Nick definitely elevated White's play. White was significantly worse when Nick was out or when paired with Quincey in the playoffs. I like Kronwall a lot, but he's going to have more responsibility than ever, let alone the expectation to make his defense partner better too. Nick made everyone look brilliant.

Solid depth signing. Can't complain because it's pretty obvious the Red Wings are in serious need of bodies alone on defense. I would like to see Carlo paired up with Ericsson to start.

Max and JV with a shot to get even. Please score some runs.

Bottom-six is very good. Among the best units in hockey. Very solid combination of energy, skill and now some "sandpaper" (by Red Wings standards) on the 4th line. Depth plays such a huge role in the NHL and IMO the strongest part of the roster right now is the bottom-six. Top-six has had issues for years and hasn't improved at all. Zetterberg and Datsyuk are a year older, Filppula has to duplicate his strong season and Franzen will score close to 30 but lacks consistency and effort. The Red Wings have needed a legitimate goal-scoring winger since Hossa left. Bertuzzi and Samuelsson belong nowhere near one of the two top lines on a contending team. The alternatives are unproven players with upside at least, but minimal to no NHL experience. I really like Nyquist and feel his development is one of the most crucial factors in determining the Red Wings ceiling this season.

Season probably at stake for the Tigers now. Minimum they absolutely need a split, ideally they take three of four and pull within a game. Not much confidence for me in either scenario the way the offense is going. Can't score runs at all and they are a brutal road team. Hoping for the best. With the starting pitching, anything could happen if the Tigers just find a way into the playoffs.

Another gem from Max. Another one-run loss because the offense is just terrible. Another missed opportunity to pull even for first place. The White Sox are 3-7 in their past ten games, the Tigers are 4-6 and three of those wins came against Chicago. Not only are the Tigers getting help from opponents, they swept the team battling with them for first and they still can't take care of business on their own otherwise. Time to get Brennan Boesch out of the lineup forever. Hitting him 6th every night is beyond stupid now. Let Garcia play regardless of the starting pitcher -- he has hit the ball harder more times this week than Boesch has all year and he actually knows how to field too. I thought the offense would be the strong point of the team, but in reality, it has turned out to be completely pathetic outside of the obvious guys. Dombrowski has some major work to do this off-season even if the Tigers make the playoffs.

Bryan Allen would have been a nice start for at least replacing Stuart and adding something to a defense that lost two top-four players this offseason. Now I suppose the rebuttal will come of why Allen sucks, so your never-ending circular argument always comes out in your favor.

Best word for this team is infuriating. If they don't make the playoffs, they can look back among many things and point to a 5-9 record against the pathetic Cleveland Indians (with four more games to go). The Indians starting pitching is a complete disaster and the Tigers have scored four runs in two games. I know anything can happen in baseball, but you can't lose two straight at home with the division at stake to an opponent that won five games in the entire month of August. Porcello can't get any run support whatsoever. Actually pitching quite well for the past five starts or so and doesn't have a single win to show for it. The bottom of the order has to start doing something immediately. Young has been hot, but Boesch, Peralta, Avila and Infante have all been terrible lately (Boesch and Avila really the entire season). Doesn't matter how good the starting pitching and bullpen are if you manage only two runs against the likes of the Royals and Indians. Have to salvage at least a game tomorrow before a long road trip.

As much as I dislike Franzen a lot of the time, I'm not sure how beneficial trading him would be to the Red Wings. The top-six is aging and not very strong for starters (especially on the wing). Now if Nyquist and/or Brunner are productive, then that changes the dynamic quite a bit. Both are unproven at this point and Franzen/Filppula are the only sure wingers on the team that belong in a top-six role. In an ideal scenario, you don't have the lingering possibility of Todd Bertuzzi and Mikeal Samuelsson playing with Datsyuk and Zetterberg. Despite Franzen's flaws, he's still good for around 30 goals. That's hard to replace for the price and I would imagine trading Franzen would be in a move to get a top-four d-man. So you're filling a major need, but at the same time also creating a huge hole in a spot where the Red Wings aren't deep to begin with. Again, I believe any possible trade of Franzen would have to be contingent upon the development of Nyquist and Brunner in particular. If the trade deadline comes along and one or both of those guys has proven to be reliable offensively, then maybe you can entertain the idea of bolstering the defense.

Sweeeeep! Perfect weekend for the Tigers complete. JV was the MVP quality pitcher again tonight and now the Tigers are set up nicely to win the division if they keep playing good baseball the rest of the way. 10-4 against the White Sox for the season and there aren't many teams (if any) I enjoy beating more. Since I rag on him quite a bit, props to Delmon Young for a terrific series and two major clutch hits. He's been hot lately and hopefully can keep swinging the bat well, which would be a huge boost for the offense. Really impressed with Avisail Garcia so far too. He looks just like Miggy and his hits have all been drilled just like Cabrera's usually are.

Max Scherzer has been sensational. Consistent and overpowering. If the Tigers make the playoffs, I like their top three starters better than anyone else's in the American League. So stoked for tonight. JV is going to be pissed off. I'm thinking a shutout, borderline no-hitter performance is coming. Time to sweep the Sox and pull even for first!

Z to talk about growing a sick beard.